Is there any hope for my experiment???

18 years ago

I was itching for a project this weekend and made the bottom of a trough one day, then a side the next day. I think it was a waste of my time, the DAYTIME temps were only about fifty. Today it went up to 55 and tomorrow will be about the same, then back to cold.

This was my first attempt with hypertufa. I used the driveway outdoors and moved the experiments into the garage at night. I'm away for business until Wednesday night, so I guess I'll see what things look like when I get back.

Is there any hope for the sides that I made? Should I try finishing them up in warmer weather, or throw them out and start over? I also started a bottom for a second trough - maybe that can be salvaged? Did I just waste about $20 worth of supplies because I am impulsive and impatient?

Thanks,

Elizabeth

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Comments (8)

daisy_ny6
18 years ago
How warm is your garage?
ic_conifers
Original Author
18 years ago
About 15 or so degrees warmer than the outside - it is an unheated, detached, older 1-car garage. Read: drafty and poorly insulated!
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daisy_ny6
18 years ago
Oh.

I have one of those, which is why I do winter tufaing in my unfinished basement - the boiler & hot water heater are both down there, so it never goes much below 60F.

If your tufa freezes before curing, well, it's hard to be optimistic. I wouldn't do any more as it is just going to get colder in January & February.
jannoel_gw
18 years ago
Why are you making the base and sides as separate pieces? How do you attach the sides to the bottom?
ic_conifers
Original Author
18 years ago
I made the base first, then the next day added on one side. I'm not sure that I had the ratios correct - my mix was pretty sloppy. I could not make more than one side at a time - the mix just fell right off.

I arrived back home today after being gone since Monday on a business trip. The pieces look okay - the one side and base are holding. I think I'll wait for warmer weather before I add another side, since I'm curious to see whether it will hold when it thaws.
Mike Larkin
18 years ago
I usually try to complete entire container at one sitting.
Re: Sloppy mix - A good test - If you can hold the mix in your hands - size of a baseball, and squeeze, and only a few drops of water comes out - your mix is good. Sloppier will result is hypertufa that is not as strong.
If this is your first time a few suggestions.
Allow enough time to do entire project.
Try to complete when temps are warmer. Tufa takes a few weeks to "cure" Iam not an expert- but I believe you will have best results if the temps are consistendly around 50 F and above.

I am not sure adding wet tufa to tufa that has dried a little will bond well, and results the sides may come undone from base.

Try small projects in the beginning - then work up to big.

LOL Mike
Maybe
Belgianpup
18 years ago
Yes, doing your container in sections isn't a good idea. You should be prepared to do the whole thing at once so the material bonds together and cures all at the same time. Cement mixes don't bond to existing cement mixes with any real strength. Even if it holds together now, one halfway decent 'thump' and it will probably come apart.

That's okay... mistakes like this are what holes in the ground are FOR! ;-) That and garbage cans....

A sloppy mix is a weak mix. Try this trick: Mix all your dry ingredients thoroughly, then add approximately HALF the water you think you'll need, and mix that in well to where everything is damp, then add small amounts of water and mix, a little more and mix, until it's right. By the time I get it right, I am adding a spoonful of water at a time to a quart or two of (finished) mix.

Get a bag of those paper drink cups. Mix your mix, stuff some of it firmly into a cup, then rap the cup sharply on your work surface and plop the mix out in its cup shape and let it sit for at least 30 seconds. If it slumps, it's too wet, and wet means weak. If it looks thoroughly moist but holds its shape (maybe with only a tiny bit of slumping), it's just about perfect, so you can proceed. Be aware that there is a really thin line between enough and too much water. (DON'T ASK ME HOW I KNOW!]

TIP: you can save your first pieces and put them in a place of honor, where you can see them every day, prime examples of What Not To Do.

Sue
tehuti
18 years ago
I have the same setup a cold, detatched garage and needed to build a small room for the washer/dryer because one year the pipes froze.
Anyway I agree with getting the whole thing done at one sitting. Is your project a "free form" design?
If you want to complete a project in such adverse conditions consider an additive. I had a driveway and a walkway poured in December. The mix had additives to speed the set time. I have not tried this with tufa but that's part of what we do - experiment.
Check out this web page.
http://www.ctscement.com/Fast.asp
Maybe you'll find some ideas there.

Robert